Receivers a close-knit group on and off field

Jonathan Branch

09/28/2012

Close relationships have been key to success for UGA receivers.

Through four games this season, eight different wide receivers have caught a pass for Georgia, and only 11 yards separate Georgia's top receiver — Michael Bennett — and Marlon Brown, who ranks third on the team in receiving yards.

Five Bulldogs have caught touchdown passes, and quarterback Aaron Murray has connected with at least seven receivers in each of Georgia's last three games.

The stat column isn't the only place Georgia receivers are hard to separate, though. The group is close off the field as well.

After nine different players caught passes last week in Georgia's 48-3 win over Vanderbilt, several of them said this year's group is the closest they have seen during their time at Georgia.

"It's definitely a close group," sophomore Chris Conley said. "We sort of do everything together. We're always with each other at practice. We're with each other in meetings. We always sit together. We'll go eat together. It's a very close group here at football and away from the facilities as well."

"We talk about everything else in life.," Wooten said. "We just hang, chill, laugh and joke around, and it's just natural. It's not forced. It just happens naturally. This is the closest I've been as a collective group with all the receivers."

That cohesiveness is noticeable to Georgia's receivers coach Tony Ball.

"You can see that they get along well," said Ball. "You can see the camaraderie within the group. You can see the closeness."

The friendships the players have off the field carries over to the gridiron, allowing receivers to trust each other, Conley said.

"When we're on the field, that cohesiveness really comes out in our plays," Conley said. "We trust everyone to run all those plays and make those different plays. It really allows us to play fast but make a lot of plays out there."

With so many receivers competing for receptions, there is the possibility of jealousy, but not with this group.

"We have all similarities and tastes in a lot of things," Wooten said. "We can be around each other. There's no tension. You're competing for spots at the same time, but there's no tension."

Ball said he likes a group of receivers that comes together, as long as the players bring out the best in each other.

"You want a group that challenges one another to be the very best they can be, while respecting one another," Ball said.

Conley assured the receivers don't get caught up in individual stats. Instead, they care about two things: scoring and winning.

"As cliché as it sounds, the most important thing to us is scoring and winning the game," said Conley, who has four catches for 46 yards. "As long as we're doing those things, guys aren't complaining. Guys aren't getting frustrated. We really feel confident with our rotation and the way we're doing it. If you're fresh, go. If you get tired, the next guy can do it."

Wooten said the bond the receivers share has grown since his Georgia career began.

"When we came in, it wasn't the best time at Georgia," said Wooten, a freshman during the 2009 season. "We weren't playing that well as a team. Times were hard. We were saying how practice was different and everything.

Today, the redshirt junior said he feels the whole team is on the same page, and the tightness the receivers share is just a reflection of how the team interacts.

"You can tell the guys are having fun, and everybody is into the system," Wooten said. "Everybody wants to go to Miami. Everybody knows the goal, and everybody is pushing and working for that common goal. That's a big difference."